Monday numbers: A closer look at the benefits of Medicaid expansion in 2019

The following numbers are based on a new Center for American Progress report that quantifies the potential benefits of Medicaid expansion if North Carolina were to fully expand Medicaid in 2019. The benefits would include:

626,000 – the number of North Carolinians who would benefit if North Carolina were to fully expand Medicaid in 2019

1,555 – the number of additional lives saved per year if North Carolina were to fully expand Medicaid in 2019

641 – the number of additional cancer diagnoses per year

548 – the number of additional early-stage cancer diagnoses per year

2,197 – the reduction in opioid-related hospitalizations of uninsured patients per year

65 – the number of bankruptcies prevented per year with full Medicaid expansion

25% – more than 1 in 4 American adults reported in 2015 that they or someone in their household had experienced trouble paying medical bills

$575.9 million – the reduction in families’ accrued medical debt with full Medicaid expansion

$713.6 million – the reduction in families’ collection balances

$177.8 million – the amount of money kept in families’ pockets from less costly credit per year

$681.6 million – the savings to local communities from enhanced public safety per year

31 – the number of states (plus the District of Columbia) that have expanded Medicaid since the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law in 2010

65 – the number of days between now and the start of the New Year when Virginia and Maine are slated to join the states with full Medicaid expansion

4 – the number of states where voters will decide whether to expand Medicaid in the coming year. Those states include: Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, and Utah.

About the author

Clayton Henkel, Communications Coordinator for N.C. Policy Watch, joined the project in November 2009. She is responsible for the project's website and newsletter management as well as production of its weekly "News and Views" radio program.clayton@ncpolicywatch.com
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